


In Which Simmons Is Sure His Life Is Over

by hotarukun



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: Gen, I'm Bad At Titles, Trans Character, pre grimmons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-23
Updated: 2014-06-23
Packaged: 2018-02-05 21:00:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1832086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hotarukun/pseuds/hotarukun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sometimes people can surprise you.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Which Simmons Is Sure His Life Is Over

His life was over. Or at least his military career was. Of course, if the alternative to military service in a canyon in the middle of nowhere was going back to Earth and having to move back in with his mother, Simmons might actually prefer that his life be over.

 

It had all seemed simple enough to start with. Once all the paperwork had gone through, he’d figured the military was the perfect chance to start over. He could join up and leave his crappy little home town and all the people who had tormented him growing up.

 

Basic had been difficult, but he’d managed. He took any excuse he could to avoid being in the showers with the other recruits, either getting up early or staying behind to run extra drills. He was constantly on edge, anxious he would slip up, that someone would find out. He avoided the other recruits as much as possible and earned himself a reputation for being stuck up. He heard the other guys mutter behind his back, but nothing they said ever came close to what he was afraid of hearing, so he bore their barbs graciously, just counting down the days until he could move on.

 

And then he was finally deployed. He was assigned to a three man team with a whole base to themselves, out in the middle of nowhere. Plenty of personal space, private bunks. Communal showers, but hey, there were only three of them. It couldn’t possibly be that hard to find some time alone in the bathroom. He’d thought it was perfect. 

 

Obviously, he’d been way too fucking naive. Turns out it was actually easier to keep a secret in a single room bunk with fifteen other guys than it was in an entire canyon that contained exactly six people, three of which they only ever saw through a scope.

 

It was, Simmons knew, partly his fault. He’d let himself be lulled into a false sense of security, relaxed his guard. But mostly it was Grif’s fault for _not knowing how to knock before he opened a damned door_.

 

And now, barely three months into his first deployment, he was going to have to quit the army and go back home. He’d been so sure that this was his chance at happiness, if he could just stay under the radar. But now his secret was out and there was no way he was going to go through the sort of abuse he’d gotten back home out here.

 

So here he was, sitting on top of the base with his legs dangling over the side while he contemplated how he would break the news to Sarge. He felt a stab of pain at the thought of leaving the old man - despite the fact that Simmons knew his CO had to have access to his medical file, not once had he made a single disparaging remark. Leaving him behind was really going to suck.

Simmons was considering the merits of writing his resignation in letter form and just leaving it for Sarge to find after he’d snuck out when he heard the shuffling of armored feet and the tell-tale throat clearing that signaled Grif’s presence behind him. Simmons stiffened as his teammate took a seat beside him, watching out of the corner of his eye as orange-clad legs swung out over the edge. 

 

There was a tense silence before Simmons finally snapped, “Well? Aren’t you going to say something?”

 

Grif gave a loud, resigned sigh. “Look, I’m sorry, okay? I should have knocked, I didn’t mean to walk in on you.”

 

Simmons had been braced for...well, pretty much anything but an apology, and the first syllable of a defensive rebuttal passed his lips before dying a strangled death as he processed his teammate’s words. “W-What?”

 

Despite the helmet keeping his features hidden, Grif still managed to give off the impression that he was rolling his eyes. “I said I was sorry, okay? I’m a jerk, I shouldn’t have just barged into your room. Happy?” 

 

Grif sounded more put out than apologetic, but the fact that he was apologizing at all was so far outside of Simmons‘ experience, he wasn‘t quite sure how to respond.“You mean....it doesn’t bother you?” he finally settled on asking. 

 

“What doesn’t bother me?” Grif asked, genuinely confused. In liu of a verbal answer, Simmons just waved his hand vaguely over his lap. “What, the fact that you have a vag?” Simmons nodded stiffly. “Why the hell would that bother me?”

 

“Well...because....its, you know.....unnatural,” Simmons replied, parroting one of the more common responses he’d gotten in the past. “Or perverted, or disgusting. Take your pick!”

 

“Is that why you’ve been weird all day? Because you think I’m going to care about the fact that you don’t have a dick? Christ, I just thought you were really self-conscious about people seeing you naked." The orange armored soldier shifted so he was facing Simmons. “Alright, this whole heart-to-heart thing? Really not my style. So I’m only going to say this once, and then we’re going to go back to being dicks to each other like usual. Deal?”  
Grif waited for Simmons to nod and then removed his helmet, his expression more serious than Simmons could remember ever seeing him. “I don’t think you are unnatural, or a pervert, or disgusting, or whatever other bullshit people have called you before. I don’t care what you have in your pants. Your junk doesn’t define you, and you will always be the same annoying kissass as you always have been. Got it?”

 

There was a moment of stunned silence before Simmons replied, voice small inside his helmet “...Really?”

 

Grif groaned. “Yes, really. Look, I’m not going to tell you that I know how you feel or anything, because I’d be lying. But my sister? When she was born, my mom named her Kaikaina because she couldn’t think of a name. Do you know what Kaikaina means?” Simmons shook his head. “It means younger sibling of the same sex. We thought she was a boy until she was twelve. I remember how awful people treated her when she told us she was a girl, and I’m not about to turn around and make you feel that way. So if we’re done with this topic, can we please talk about something else?”

 

Simmons nodded and a Grif turned back to dangle his legs over the edge again. The two sat in companionable silence for a few blissful moments before it was broken by Grif’s “Dude...are you _crying_?”

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Chase, because trans!Simmons is his headcannon.


End file.
